1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to heat exchangers and, more specifically, to a single heat exchanger used in a motor vehicle.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is known to provide motor vehicles with heat exchangers such as condensers, evaporators, heaters, and coolers. Typically, these heat exchangers have separate cores such that a separate heat exchanger core is provided for an evaporator and a heater. However, separate stamping press dies are required for each heat exchanger core, resulting in a relatively large amount of floor space for each stamping die. Further, stamping each separate heat exchanger core is not efficient, resulting in a relatively large amount of stamping scrap.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a single heat exchanger having an evaporator core and a heater core. Also, it is desirable to provide a heat exchanger having two separate cores in a single stamping.
Accordingly, the present invention is a single heat exchanger including a first core and a second core and a connecting mechanism interconnecting the first core and the second core. The first core and the second core are positioned at an angle relative to each other via the connecting mechanism.
One advantage of the present invention is that a single heat exchanger is provided having a separate evaporator core and heater core. Another advantage of the present invention is that single heat exchanger includes tabs or a common end sheet that allows the cores to be positioned at an angle to each other. Yet another advantage of the present invention is that the single heat exchanger allows the cores to be positioned at an angle and facilitate the use of traditional climate control strategies, which incorporate blend doors for temperature control. Still another advantage of the present invention is that the single heat exchanger increases manufacturing efficiencies by producing both cores at the same time and decreasing manufacturing costs. A further advantage of the present invention is that the single heat exchanger may also reduce required packaging space in a motor vehicle.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will be readily appreciated, as the same becomes better understood, after reading the subsequent description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.